Agnition Ventures

Jasper van Halder and Christy Mead (Agtech Growth Specialist at Agnition) spoke with Rural Exchange about Agnition’s mission and how the team addresses agtech challenges in New Zealand. They highlighted the disconnect between agtech innovators and farmers, and explained how Agnition’s pilot farm network helps bridge the gap between these groups. Join us for our next Pilot Farm Network webinar on 29 October 2024! Whether you are a farmer, agtech innovator, investor, or industry group representative, we would love to have you there. Sign up using the link below: https://lnkd.in/gg4SkBVi

Getting farmers to test products and provide feedback is a major hurdle for agtech companies. Farmers are often skeptical of new technology, short on time, and uncertain of the benefits, and this makes it tough for agtech firms to validate and refine their solutions, and slowing growth and adoption. To address this challenge, Agnition's pilot farm network creates direct connections between farmers and agtech companies. If you know any farmers or agtech companies interested in participating, contact Christy Mead for more details.

Jasper van Halder, CEO of Agnition, recently spoke with BusinessDesk NZ to discuss his vision for the future of Agnition Ventures, the corporate innovation and investment arm of Ravensdown. The full article is behind a paywall, here are a few key takeaways: “Anything that can help or hurt the fertiliser industry, we want to be involved in. As a co-operative, our focus is on providing value for farmers, and if that results in lower fertiliser volumes, it might still be the right move.” With a current portfolio of 13 companies that include Analytical Research Laboratory Ltd, C-Dax Agricultural Solutions, Cropmark Seeds Ltd, and Southstar Technologies, Agnition aims to double that number over the next three years. The returns from these investments will not only be measured in financial terms but also through their broader value to Ravensdown and New Zealand farmers. Agnition has an incubation arm to help turn promising technologies into viable businesses. One such venture is Ecopond, an effluent treatment system developed in collaboration with Ravensdown and Lincoln University (NZ). The team at Agnition reviews over 250 investment opportunities each year and is actively building a network of individual investors, including angel investors and other form of experienced investors, who are interested in co-investing alongside Agnition. Please reach out to the team if you want to know more!

The team is proud that our very own Christy Chapman has been featured by Ravensdown, recognising her incredible work in connecting innovative ag-tech companies with real-world farmers. Accessing farmers for rapid technology and business model validation, or gaining initial sales traction can be challenging. To address this, and with the goal of bringing cutting-edge solutions to New Zealand farming, Christy is leading our newly launched Pilot Farm Network. “It’s a simple two-way street: agri innovators get their products in front of interested farmers, while farmers gain access to useful technology, try it on their farms, and share feedback without incurring high costs.” The next session is planned for October. If you are an agtech innovator seeking rapid feedback from real-world farmers, or a farmer or grower interested in testing new agtech solutions, please connect with Christy Chapman. https://lnkd.in/gqazzK_q

At Agnition, we are always scouting for new innovations and trends. Jasper van Halder, CEO of Agnition, recently shared his firsthand market insights on Farmers Weekly NZ from his trip to the Netherlands. He highlighted key trends, including the growing popularity of flexitarian diets, shifts in dairy consumption, and the emergence of ‘natural wine.’ Jasper discussed how these trends might impact New Zealand farming. 

Elliot Mercer, our GM of Innovation, is deeply passionate about driving change in agriculture through collaboration with AgriTech New Zealand. With your support, we will continue to develop and invest in solutions for real-world challenges in NZ agriculture. Aimer Farming NZ Growth Capital Partners ChristchurchNZ AgriZeroNZ

To get break-through innovations to New Zealand farms, you’ve got to know what farmers need (and don’t need). At Agnition, we spend a few days per year doing on-farm work to learn exactly that. This week, Jasper van Halder had the privilege to join Abe de Wolde and Anita de Wolde and their team at their impressive 4,000 cow at Woldwide Farms in South NZ. Over the years, Jasper has delved into many different industries in countries across the world. His latest farming experience was another reminder that New Zealand farmers are not just wonderful custodians of their land and animals, they’re also astute and high-performing business people at the very top of their game (and he seemed to be enjoying milking some cows!). www.woldwidefarms.com

We are proud to be co-investing in Aimer Farming, alongside Pacific Channel. Enhancing pasture utilisation is one of the main levers for farmers to increase yield and ensure animal wellbeing. However, it takes farmers too much time and energy to optimise pasture measurement and optimisation  due to factors such as multiple herd size, paddock growth rates, pre- and post-graze targets, and target feed intakes. Managing this complexity requires substantial paperwork, extensive manual calculations, and a reliance on what can often be inaccurate estimates. Aimer aims to take care of all that with its innovative digital tech solution. Aimer has developed an AI-enabled solution designed to simplify pasture measurement and automatically generate rotational grazing and supplement plans. Founded by dairy farmer turned AgTech innovator Jeremy Bryant, the Aimer solution eliminates the need for time-consuming farm walks and complex spreadsheet work. Agnition’s investment conviction was built on a combination of factors: its affordability, no additional hardware requirements, and the user-friendly interface developed specifically with farmers in mind. These advantages make Aimer particularly appealing to dairy and beef farmers who juggling increasing input costs, labour shortages, and have little time available to learn complex technologies. Jeremy Bryant 🤳🌱🐂 Jasper van Halder Wilson Huang